FAST payment Singapore: Fast and secure transfer overview

If you’re new to the Singapore banking system - or just curious about how it works - you may be wondering: what is the FAST payment system? This guide covers all you need to know about Singapore FAST payments, including why the system was introduced, the benefits, and how it works.¹

The FAST system (FAST is an acronym for Fast and Secure Transfers) has been around in Singapore since 2014. It’s a great way to make transfers between participating banks in Singapore dollars - and as the name suggests, it’s pretty speedy. Let’s take a closer look at the features and benefits of FAST, and how to use it.

What is a FAST payment (Fast and Secure Transfer)?

FAST was launched to give a quicker way for individuals and businesses to make transfers between Singapore dollar bank accounts. Before FAST, a simple transfer could take up to 3 days to process - it’s now almost instant.²

When the Singapore FAST payment system began it was only open to banks. However, other financial service providers can now join the network, subject to meeting the conditions of the Monetary Authority³ That means you can use FAST payments when you send international transfers with Wise, or top up your Wise borderless multi-currency account.

Most of the major banks in Singapore are part of the FAST network, although participation is up to the banks themselves, and so the full list of members could change from time to time. If you have an account with a participating organisation or bank, you’ll be able to make a FAST transfer to someone with a SGD account in the same institution - or another participating bank or organisation within the FAST network.

In most cases, you’ll be able to make a FAST transfer from your bank if you have a savings or checking account. Depending on your specific account terms and conditions, you may find you have daily, monthly or periodic limits on the amount you can send.

Use FAST payments for quicker, low cost international transfers, with Wise

If you need to send an international payment you can still benefit from FAST payments when you use Wise. You’ll get low cost international transfers which use the mid-market exchange rate for just a small transparent fee - and because Wise uses a smart network of local bank accounts to cut the costs of sending money abroad, your payment will also reach Wise for processing quicker thanks to Singapore’s FAST payment system.

If you travel or spend internationally a lot, you can choose to open a free online Wise borderless multi-currency account to get mid-market rate currency exchange, as well as your own linked debit card for international spending. You’ll never pay to spend currencies you hold in your account, no matter where in the world you are.

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How do FAST payments work?

FAST payments are sent through your own bank’s online banking system. That means you can set up a FAST transfer using any device your bank accepts, including your phone, tablet or laptop.

How much you can send using FAST will vary depending on the limits put in place by your own bank. The network itself only imposes an upper limit of SGD200,000 per transfer - but your own bank may have stricter limits, as well as a minimum transfer amount. Check your account terms and conditions to find out more.

The FAST system (FAST is an acronym for Fast and Secure Transfers) has been around in Singapore since 2014. It’s a great way to make transfers between participating banks in Singapore dollars - and as the name suggests, it’s pretty speedy. Let’s take a closer look at the features and benefits of FAST, and how to use it.

What if I made a mistake with my payment?

It’s especially important with FAST payments that you’re careful about the details you use to process a payment. Because the money will be sent instantly to your recipient’s bank account, there’s no way of stopping the payment once it’s processed.

Check the name and account details for your recipient carefully. If you discover you’ve made an error in your payment you’ll need to contact your own bank right away. They can help you to trace the payment and will work with the recipient’s bank to try to get the money back. You may find you need to lodge a police report before any investigation can take place.

Participating banks

The list of banks which participate in the FAST system will change from time to time - so do check with your own bank if they’re not featured here.

The good news is that most of the major banks operating in Singapore are part of the network - and now it’s open to other non-bank financial institutions like Wise, too.

Here are some of the major banks within the FAST network:

• ANZ Bank
• Bank of China
• The Bank of TokyoMitsubishi UFJ
• BNP Paribas
• CIMB Bank
• Citibank
• DBS Bank/POSB
• Deutsche Bank
• HL Bank
• HSBC
• ICICI Bank
• Maybank
• Mizuho Bank
• OCBC Bank
• RHB Bank
• Standard Chartered Bank
• Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation
• UOB Bank

The Singapore FAST payment network is a smart and simple way to make everyday bank transfers better. Instead of waiting 3 days for your money to arrive, you can get it to your recipient almost instantly. As long as you’re sending money to an account based in Singapore, and using SGD, it’s a no brainer.

Now that non-bank financial institutions such as Wise can also participate in the FAST network, there are even more ways to use it to make your day to day life a little easier.

Use Wise to send money overseas, and you could be saving money, getting a better exchange rate - and your payment could arrive in your recipient’s account quicker than ever thanks to FAST.